History.
The Original Guardians The Guardians of the Dawn were originally an order of warriors who existed in the twilight century of the Elven epoch. After millennia of control the golden age of elven power was coming to an end in Althea. The younger races were breeding faster than the elves and slowly displacing them. As custodians of the land, the elves allowed the humans, orcs and other races into their cities and tried to civilise them as best they could. The elves maintained control however, with the other races denied access to power and treated as second class citizens. Generally they were not treated cruely, but they did not enjoy equality. Over time the shifting population balances led to revolts and in the case of the orcs, wide scale butchery. This coupled with concerns about racial impurity, eventually lead to the rise of the Dark Elves within elven society. They were not racially different from the others, but believed in the savage suppression and in some cases extermination of non-elves. Whether their worship of the dark gods and the tapping of tainted powers came before or after the hatred of the non-elves cannot be determined, but it is certain that the two fuelled each other. In response to what they saw as growing injustice, the Guardians of the Dawn were formed by a group of elves who believed that all sentient races deserved a chance to live free from oppression and torment. They believed that the civil unrest was caused by oppression of the younger races rather than by any inherent savagery they had. They rejected the morals the Dark Elves were propagating through elven society and instead stood for righteousness. Their efforts were not just focused on defending against elven injustice, they also fought to protect local populations from some of the more violent and barbaric uprisings, orkish incursions, undead plagues and the forces of chaos in general. An initial council (The First Conclave) was formed and the movement spread across the Elven Empire. While the initial members were all elves, non-elves quickly joined their ranks. The movement spoke of a New Dawn of enlightenment, where all races lived as equals in harmony. This had obvious appeal for humans and half-elves so many joined the ranks. Due to the absolute control held by the governing Elven elite however, the movement had to stay underground. To talk of non-human emancipation was treasonous and against the way things had been done for thousands of years. For many the consideration of humans as equal to elves was considered a vile abomination. In addition the Dark Elves were growing in number and their beliefs enjoyed open popularity in elven society. For several decades the Guardians and the Dark Elves fought a cold war full of political machinations. While the Guardians fought many battles and skirmishes, the Dark Elf strength was too powerful and they never fulfilled their ambition. The Great Collapse Just over a millennia ago, the great collapse of the Elven Empire occurred after the Empress Andu'Alora was assassinated by her Dark Elf Brother Vandis with the Menelmahtari. Having been a symbol of unity for the elvish people since it had first been used to rally the elven tribes in ancient times, the Menelmahtari was a sword of epic power. In the lead up to the assassination, a Seeress of Guardians, Ramereia had a vision about the sword, but the Guardians were not able to act in time to prevent the tragic event. Not only had Ramereia seen the vision of the empress being slain, but also the dark taint that now stained its blade. She saw the blade being the rallying point for the rise of a Dark Elven nation, with the swords power driving the elven people mad with bloodlust. A Guardian Shadow Dancer by the name of Ferrick Shardon, using stealth was able to steal the now cursed blade away from Vandis. The Guardian’s led by Ranos the Griffon, ventured into the Halsedia Mountains to find the legendary Anvil of Corovax, on which they hoped to destroy the blade. Within the caverns that held the Anvil, they were ambused by Dark Elves and all thought to be slain. In fact the Seeress Ramereia survived and managed to lock herself in stasis and send the Menelmahtari into the future through a time vortex. With the Empress dead at her brother’s hand and the Menelmahtari missing, civil war broke out across the empire. The Guardians soon became just one of many factions fighting against the Dark Elves as mainstream elvish society rejected their wicked ways. The Dark elves were eventually beaten into hiding, but not before they took their revenge on the Guardians. Blaming them for the loss of the sword and exposing Vandis’ crime they hunted down every know member of the Guardians. Within a decade of the beginning of the Great Collapse, there was not a single Guardian of the Dawn left alive. When the war ended, the elven empire was a shadow of its former glory: cities lay in ruin and a society of people who had lived for hundreds of years had suddenly lost millions. Where the elves had massacred each other however, the other races emerged largely unscathed. Human uprisings followed and all of what would become Middlemark and most of what became Aris freeded itself of elven control. A dark age ensued with the only truly elvish state remaining in Lirallin. The resurrection of the Guardians Althea is once again torn by strife and conflict. Aris and Middlemark are at war, Estra is once again accessible after many years of isolation and conflict is rife amongst the boarderlands. Orkish raiders are thick in the southern seas, while Northern barbarians raid the northern coasts of Aris and Middlemark. Old hatreds stir amongst the elves too with Dark Elven conspiracies once again exerting their influence on the world. While the Elven realm of Lirallin remained relatively unscathed by war, it too continues to suffering a slow decline. Elven birth rates are low and the other allied states of Aris continue to exert their pressures. From this relative paradise a young Half-Elf, by the name of Celondosse Ellen Galad, raised in High Elven society by his grandparents emerged to explore the world. Through his travels he came to understand the troubles that plagued Althea and was eventually attracted to the cause of the Vanwarim. The Vanwarim were a group of elves who were on a quest to find the legendary Menelmahtari. Having been lost since the time of the Great Collapse, the Vanwarim believed that the sword was the key to bringing about a new golden era of civilisation. Venturing throughout Aris and Middlemark with the Vanwarim, Celondosse learnt of the dark treachery planned by some members of the group. This came to a head when Celondosse received a vision from a Woodland spirit about a terrible evil that soon would be let forth upon the world. The vision was of a tall elf, with flowing dark hair, holding aloft the cursed blade of the Menelmahtari. With this blade he united the elves of Althea and bound them with an unquenchable bloodlust. Celondosse’s vision was interrupted however when he felt Gwydion’s blade against his throat. One of the leaders of the Vanwarim, Gwydion was a wild elf, whom Celondosse had long suspected as having dark motives. By some miracle of reflex he was able to turn away before the blade bit into flesh. The damage was done however, Gwydion’s treachery had finally been revealed. Confused and in fear of his life, Celondosse left the Vanwarim and ventured home to Lirallin in search of answers. From there he embarked on a quest which eventually led him to the Halsedia Mountains where he found the Seeress Ramereia, the only surviving member of the original Guardians of the Dawn. From her he learnt the truth about the curse on the Menelmahtari and vowed to rekindle the light of hope the Guardians once promised. A new force for Good Over the following twelve months, Celondosse searched Middlemark, accompanied by soldiers from the House Guard of Ellen Galad for those who might be interested in the cause. Word began to spread and within six months the group had moved from being a band of adventurers to becoming a new order of warriors. Chapter houses sprang up in many of the major cities and the ancient fortress home of the original Guardians, Anarórë Mindon (The Tower of the Dawn) was rediscovered in Carpathia. While the fortress lay in ruin atop Talons Reach, the Guardians set about restoring it and exploring its ancient catacombs. Across Middlemark, the Guardians now act as a force for truth, justice and the protection of the innocent. They target corrupt or tyrannical nobility, protect local populations from the forces of chaos, work to bring about the end to undead plagues and seek out vile creatures that threaten the week. Within the space of twelve months their reputation has grown and they have already earned the favour of the Empress of Middelmark and been awarded a number of seats on her Council. Category:The Fall